ATLANTA — Plans to build a $10 million skybridge connecting the Georgia State Capitol to a new legislative office building have been put on hold after an Atlanta City Council committee declined to approve the proposal.

The City Council’s Transportation Committee expressed concerns that the elevated walkway planned to span Martin Luther King Jr. Drive could reduce foot traffic and harm nearby downtown businesses. The bridge is part of a nearly $400 million renovation project for the Capitol complex.

Critics also raised concerns about the impact on the historic Capitol building itself.

David Mitchell, executive director of the Atlanta Preservation Center, praised the committee’s decision. “So the idea of carving a hole in the side of it to shove a tube into it is not going to be something I’m gonna embrace,” he said.

Mitchell also noted the building’s cultural and architectural importance, adding, “There’s all of this kind of standards and layers that are associated with it that really give a cultural identification to the state of Georgia.”

The committee’s vote pauses the project, but discussions are expected to continue as the broader renovation moves forward.

WSB’s Jonathan O’Brien contributed to this story